Management Information Sheet

You will be aware that delegates at the recent finance keynote conferences were asked for feedback about areas where they would like to see improved LA services, or areas where strategies could be formulated that could be trialled in schools in order to improve financial management and governance.

Feedback from the peer groups was remarkably similar at all seven conferences.

This can be summarised into 9 main themes:

1.	Improve the Operation of the Existing Support Service Includes clarification of roles & responsibilities; terms of reference for Finance Support; consideration of SLAs; role of internal audit, collaborative working with HR; processes for monitoring and reporting, etc.
2.	Review Financial Processes Review of financial toolkits, including budget plan; review outputs from Star Accounts system; provision of curriculum mapping guidance; HR indicators; RAG ratings; benchmarking data; standard processes; process for escalation of support.
3.	Sharing of Good School Practice Web-based FAQs guide to share good (and poor) practice, overseen and moderated by a working group.
4.	Review of School Balances Review of whole mechanism and criteria for analysing balances.
5.	Cluster Working Review of current and future ways of working, including governance
6.	Training Review of current and future arrangements, including triangulation of support for new heads, experienced heads, heads' mentors, bursars and others.
7.	The Financial Challenge Review supportive challenge given to schools with issues, including provision of a 'SIP'-type visit etc.
8.	Governor Related Issues Review of support and training for governors, including communication methods and channels; defining roles of Chairs of Finance; training; governor mentors; provision of experienced finance governors; information sharing, including topic sheet '10 things to ask about…'.
9.	Funding of Schools in Financial Difficulty Formulation of a paper for consideration by the Schools' Forum of the protocol for the use of the funding set aside to support schools in financial difficulty.

Work is currently underway to produce terms of reference for each group, and these will be circulated once agreed.

A number of delegates volunteered to sit on the working groups, and they have been e-mailed directly asking for a firm commitment, and which areas they are interested in.

Any colleagues that have not yet volunteered to be part of the project may still do so by e-mailing Alison Randall, School Support Manager in Children's Services Finance at alison.randall@norfolk.gov.uk.

Outcomes from the working groups will, in due course, also be circulated for comment and consultation.